“I got along wonderfully with everyone in the Cui Family. I had money and leisure time, a husband utterly devoted to me, and the freedom to visit my mother whenever I wished. That kind of life wasn’t easy to come by!”
“Just because I entered the palace once,” she said, glaring hatefully at the Emperor as her voice choked with sobs, “just because I happened to run into you there one time, it was all gone.”
In her fury, her voice trembled as she repeated her earlier words. “I was living perfectly fine before, and you ruined it all.”
Those days of leisurely bliss, surrounded by luxury and flowers, were gone forever.
A vein throbbed on the Emperor’s forehead. He shot to his feet.
He yanked Yirong off the bed and pinned her against his chest, snarling, “How dare you be so insolent!”
No one had ever dared to act so wildly in his presence. Not even in recent years had anyone called him by name to his face. A ridiculous thought flashed through his mind: was she deliberately courting death?
The spot where he gripped her had gone numb from the pain. Yirong let out a hollow laugh. “I’m just speaking the truth. You’re blinded by lust and lacking in virtue. How can there be someone like you in this world—stealing another man’s wife and then righteously demanding his life?!”
The palace servants who had been attending to ink and medicine in the hall had long since retreated, holding their breath.
In the end, all she cared about was Cui Cheng’s life.
The Emperor’s dark eyes fixed on her face, a muscle twitching at his temple.
After staring at her for a long moment, he asked in disbelief, his voice soft, “Wonderfully? You still think the Cui Family was so great?”
Yirong’s lips pressed together uncomfortably. She replied coldly, “It was wonderful before.”
“Zhen can give you all the leisure and money you desire—hundreds or thousands of times more than before. You won’t need to curry favor with anyone. Others will be the ones begging for your goodwill.” He suppressed his anger as he told her this.
Yirong wanted to laugh again. Wasn’t there someone standing right in front of her who demanded her constant flattery?
One word from him could end a life.
She couldn’t hold back. She truly couldn’t.
Once her reason returned, Yirong knew she should kneel and beg nicely for him to spare Cui Cheng. But she was human, after all—how could she endure such humiliation and then speak kindly to her tormentor?
“Your Majesty speaks of all these wonderful benefits. Why not find a woman who’s willing to accept them? Or is it that you can’t find one?”
Her words dripped with undisguised sarcasm. The Emperor’s face darkened instantly, as if water might drip from it. All his patience for her had vanished.
Staring at the strange smile on her face, he warned her word by word, “Know when to stop.”
Yirong met the Emperor’s sharp gaze. Her heart pounded like a drum.
In their silent standoff, Zheng Yan’s expression softened slightly. Suddenly, Yirong said, “You can’t kill Cui Cheng.”
“Shut your mouth!” he barked.
The Emperor flung away the hand that had pinned half of Yirong’s body. She staggered back several steps before grabbing the edge of the bed and slowly sliding to the floor. She watched as the Emperor stormed out in a rage, his sleeve sweeping a porcelain vase off a small side table. The secret-colored shards clattered across the floor.
His figure vanished from her sight.
Moments later, a palace maid entered to clean up. Seeing Yirong sitting blankly on the ground, she hurried over to help her up.
The Emperor had only this one lady-in-waiting by his side. The maids exchanged a glance, and one whispered, “His Majesty is quite angry. Should we help you chase after him?”
Yirong turned a deaf ear.
Meanwhile, the Emperor strode out. He didn’t stop until he reached the other side of Central Harmony Hall. After kicking open the door and entering the room, he took a deep breath. In a harsh tone, he demanded, “Where is Fan Ying?”
Gao Fuliang, who had hurried after him without pausing to wipe his sweat, quickly replied, “Your Majesty, General Fan is still conducting a thorough search in the city for the criminal—Cui Cheng. Duke Qiao is waiting outside the hall to beg your forgiveness. The criminal left a Family Severance Letter and fled the Cui Family. The Duke feels deeply ashamed for failing to keep watch.”
At this, the Emperor seized a paperweight from the desk and hurled it at the door. It smashed a jagged hole in the wooden panel, sending splinters flying and startling birds from a nearby tree.
His face cold, he composed himself after a moment and said casually, “Tell him to go back. Since the ties are severed, he has no relation to this anymore.”
The Emperor closed his eyes briefly. Cui Cheng had left a letter severing ties with his parents, clearly resolving never to show his face again. So why had he come to the Imperial Retreat Palace this time? Was it with impure intentions, trying to whisk her away on a private elopement?
She hadn’t gone with him, though…
His brows unconsciously relaxed.
And how had Cui Cheng gotten in? At the thought, the Emperor’s anger flared anew. This vast palace, guarded by rotating shifts of martial guards, had allowed Cui Cheng to wander freely like it was deserted!
“Have Cheng Ye investigate thoroughly. Find out which gate he entered through and who permitted it.”
After issuing the order, he rubbed his chin, sensing something oddly suspicious about the whole affair.
His instructions continued.
“Have someone prepare her medicine. And,” the Emperor paused, “bring some ointment over. Find two palace maids with gentle hands to apply it to her arm.”
Gao Fuliang assented repeatedly. After a long silence, the Emperor seemed to mutter to himself, “How can there be such a shrewish, ungrateful woman!”
The Emperor’s fingers rubbed the web of his thumb, where faint teeth marks lingered from recent days. He had been especially careful around others, not wanting his ministers to notice.
The eunuch thought to himself that if Madam Lu had been endlessly compliant, His Majesty might not have taken to her at all—but how could he voice that? Bowing low, he smiled. “Forgive this servant’s ignorance, Your Majesty. I truly don’t understand these matters.”
The Emperor didn’t smile.
Gao Fuliang had a sudden idea. “Perhaps this servant could invite Prince Ning to come keep you company?”
“No need,” the Emperor snapped irritably. “Have Fan Ying and Cheng Ye meticulously check the defenses of the palace and the city. If Cui Cheng can’t be found, so be it.”
Gao Fuliang passed on the orders again. As he spoke softly, he accidentally met the Emperor’s gaze and hastily lowered his eyes.
The young sovereign’s brows furrowed slightly.
The Emperor was usually masterful in handling others, meting out grace and severity in equal measure—who didn’t obey him utterly? Gao Fuliang pondered inwardly that he actually had a few ideas. For instance, exile this Cui Sixth Young Master far away, report a false death to the capital, and after taking Madam Lu into the palace, even if Cui Cheng returned years later, it would be too late.
Or simply bring Madam Lu’s mother here and place her right under Madam Lu’s nose, forcing her to weigh her own situation.
Hadn’t the Emperor considered it?
Zheng Yan waved him off. The eunuchs standing by in the hall withdrew.
The hall fell utterly silent. No one dared to repair the hole he had smashed while he was there. A slant of evening sunlight filtered in, casting fleeting glimmers that turned the Emperor’s eyelashes golden.
What was she doing now?
The thought of her pale, frail face only fueled his anger.
Along with a twinge of discomfort he couldn’t quite refute.
He instinctively reached for a memorial to review, but the desk held only two volumes of classics and histories—nothing else.
The memorials were in the bedchamber.
The Emperor sat rigidly for a moment, adjusted his jade crown, pressed his lips together, and strode toward the bedchamber.
He forbade any announcement. Before he could round the screen, he heard a woman’s soft laughter. Stepping forward, he saw her half-reclining on the couch, weaving a bright tangle of colored silk threads in her hands. Two palace maids knelt beside her, chatting and laughing with her.
At his entrance, the two maids immediately retreated and knelt to the side. The smile faded from her face, and she set aside what she was holding.
The hall fell quiet at once.
The Emperor approached her and looked down, seeing only her expressionless face.
“What are you doing?”
Yirong said nothing.
“Have they applied the medicine to you?”
Yirong glanced at the two palace maids who had been laughing with her moments ago; now they knelt trembling with their heads bowed. “Yes,” she said.
“You may all withdraw,” she added. The two rose hastily and left.
The Emperor sat down and asked softly, “Did Zhen hurt you?”
Yirong’s eyes shifted. She shook her head.
His sword-callused palm gently cupped her cheek. Startled, Yirong listened as he said, “You’ve already divorced. From now on, you’re forbidden from dwelling on the past.”
Yirong nodded lightly.
Her eyes were somewhat swollen and red, her eyelids pink and puffy, as if she had cried earlier. The Emperor hadn’t yet asked what she and Cui Cheng had discussed—her maid knew nothing either—but the words died on his lips; he no longer wanted to ask.
“Rest now. Call them back to keep you company.” He gazed at her quietly for a while, then released her face.
With that, the Emperor stood and tapped twice on the antique cabinet nearby. Palace servants entered promptly, asking deferentially what his command was.
He ordered the memorials brought in, then left as well.
Yirong remembered something and hurriedly slipped on her soft shoes, chasing after him a few steps. “Your Majesty—”
“Don’t mention it again.” He turned, his gaze dark and brooding, cutting her off swiftly.
She gave a faint smile. “I wanted Shuilian to come keep me company.”
“Wait here.”
But this wait lasted three days.
–
Shuilian walked slowly toward Central Harmony Hall. In the distance, she saw Gao Fuliang apparently waiting to speak with her. Gritting her teeth against the pain, she quickened her pace and curtsied. “Eunuch Gao.”
Gao Fuliang motioned for her to follow him to a secluded side room where they could talk privately. There, he asked, “Has your leg healed, Miss Shuilian?”
“Thanks to the medicine you provided, this servant is fully recovered.”